FLOWOOD, Miss. (WJTV) — The Nature Park in Flowood is the place to be this Saturday for plenty fun and a chance to help JDRF find a cure for Type-1 Diabetes.

The festivities begin Friday at the Nature Park with a Family Fun Night Cookout from 5 until 7.

The gates will reopen for the Walk Saturday morning at 8. Type-1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disorder that comes suddenly, but there is plenty of room for hope.

It’s an event 20 years in the making. Teams of walkers will hit their stride this Saturday morning.

Michelle Reza is the Executive Director for JDRF in Mississippi.

“The gates open at the Nature Park at 8 a.m. Our walk starts at 10:00. We’ll have sponsor booths,” Reza says. “Teams will be out there. We’ll serve lunch, do our fabulous walk, and it will be a lot of fun.”

Teams can register at jdrf.org They can be made up of co-workers, classmates or family members, anyone who wants to support JDRF.

“Our goal is to fund research and accelerate life-changing technologies to cure, treat and prevent type-1 diabetes,” Reza says.

Type-1 diabetes can present itself in children or adults.

“It has nothing to do with lifestyle or exercise. It’s when your pancreas just stops producing insulin, and we need insulin to survive.”

It’s a life-changing diagnosis. JDRF puts together Bags of Hope to help people who will be insulin dependent for the rest of their lives. They help them count carbs and check their blood sugar.

“You can manage your diabetes the strictest and the best way possible, and be on top of it, and you can still have problems, so that’s why we need to find a cure.”

The One Walk raises money for that critical mission. It’s also a great way to meet other families dealing with diabetes. Step by step JDRF is changing lives for the better.

“Twelve percent of Mississippians have diabetes, and JDRF is the organization that will find a cure,” she said.

You can help them along the way.

Some of the exciting new technologies JDRF has helped research include an artificial pancreas that can monitor glucose levels around the clock and provide just the right amount of insulin. JDRF is pleased to welcome its Chief Mission Officer to Jackson on November 28. Dr. Aaron Kuwolski will speak at UMMC’s Heart Center about the latest work to cure and manage type-1 Diabetes.

JDRF has more than 200 chapters worldwide. Together they have raised more than 2 billion dollars to find a cure for Type-1 Diabetes research.